In August 2023, claims began to spread on social media platforms that Beyoncé had updated the "Break My Soul (The Queens Remix)" song to remove mentions of singer Lizzo.
The claim spread as the latter "Truth Hurts" singer was sued by three of her former dancers in a case filed on Aug. 1, 2023. The lawsuit alleges she created a hostile work environment and engaged in sexual harassment, claims she has denied.
"Beyoncé did NOT say Lizzo's name tonight," a Twitter post said on Aug. 1, 2023. Attached to the post was a video that claimed to show Beyoncé performing the remix, saying "Badu" four times over and over.
Beyoncé did NOT say Lizzo's name tonight?- pic.twitter.com/ory4xkJbYV
— danny??² (@captainyonce) August 2, 2023
We found the claim on other social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. In the wake of the lawsuit, it became a meme on Twitter to claim Beyoncé had removed mentions of Lizzo from the remix and replaced it with someone else's name.
?| Beyoncé has updated "Break My Soul — The Queens Remix" by removing Lizzo from the verse and replacing her with Mary Roach Guilbeaux pic.twitter.com/TCBikzqQ5b
— Leslie Mann VEVO (@ugghhhhhhhhhhh) August 3, 2023
In this story, we examined claims that Beyoncé had skipped over Lizzo's name during a live performance of the remix, as well as whether the song had been altered on streaming platforms. We reached out to Beyoncé's publicist and will update this story if we hear back.
Did Beyoncé Omit Lizzo's Name During Live Performance of 'Break My Soul'?
"Break My Soul (The Queens Remix)" was released in August 2022, with Madonna also appearing in the remix. In one of Beyoncé's verses, she celebrates Black women in the music industry. Lizzo is mentioned after R&B singer Erykah Badu:
Betty Davis, Solange Knowles
Badu, Lizzo, Kelly Rowl' (You know you can do it)
Lauryn Hill, Roberta Flack
Reputable publications like Insider reported that on Aug. 1, 2023, Beyoncé had indeed removed Lizzo's name during a live performance of the remix in Foxborough, Massachusetts, for the "Renaissance" world tour. Badu's name was instead repeated four times. According to Insider, she also skipped Rowland's ("Rowl's) and Hill's names during the performance.
There may be another reason for Beyonce's skipping Lizzo's name. Insider wrote the additional repetition of Badu's name may have been a response to the singer "calling out" Beyoncé on her Instagram Story the day before the performance for wearing a top hat during the "Renaissance" tour that is similar to one Badu wears.
On Aug. 2, 2023, Beyonce's mother, Tina Knowles, appeared to refute the claims on Instagram, replying to a post about the rumors, "She also didn't say her own sisters name yal should really stop." We also asked Beyoncé's publicist about the comment and will update this story if we hear back.
At the time of this writing, Beyoncé had not performed on the tour since the Aug. 1 show, as the next tour date in Landover, Maryland — near Washington, D.C. — was not scheduled until Aug. 5. There was no indication that Lizzo's name would be omitted, removed, or included in the verse of the remix during future tour performances.
Has 'The Remix' Been Edited on Streaming Platforms to Remove Lizzo's Name?
At the time of this writing, Lizzo's name was still featured in the remix on Spotify. We found no evidence her name had been removed from the track uploaded on other music streaming services, like Apple Music, either.
In addition, if Beyoncé had permanently edited the remix, reputable publications would have reported the move. For example, such publications reported about edits Beyoncé made to two songs on the "Renaissance" album in August 2022.
We've also fact-checked other claims about the lawsuit against Lizzo, like a resurfaced claim about whether she had said she wanted to have sex with all of the members of BTS. We found it was correctly attributed to the singer.